Former Haryana Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Monday accused the BJP government of repeatedly increasing education fees, presiding over paper leaks in recruitment examinations, failing to curb scams, and pushing the state into mounting debt.
"The government has once again dropped a 'fee-hike bomb' on students. It has issued a decree to fleece youths aspiring to become doctors, nurses and pharmacists. The government has imposed a massive fee hike of up to 400 per cent for medical and paramedical courses at the University of Health Sciences, Rohtak (UHSR), effective from August 1," Hooda said.
"The government has made it clear that it intends to turn the education system into a system of exploitation by drastically increasing late fees and penalties. The BJP must withdraw this decision," he added.
Addressing a press conference at his Rohtak residence along with Shakuntala Khatak, Subhash Batra, Anand Dangi, Sant Kumar, Chakravarti Sharma and Balwan Ranga, Hooda also highlighted alleged irregularities in the Haryana Teacher Eligibility Test (HTET).
He said complaints had surfaced regarding the distribution of incorrect OMR sheets and question papers, unsealed question papers, mismatched serial numbers on OMR sheets and question papers, and errors in the language of the questions.
"It appears that the BJP government is not conducting examinations but playing a cruel joke on the candidates. There were instances of incorrect paper distribution, flaws in paper setting, mismatches between the serial numbers of OMR sheets and question papers, and language errors that suggested the paper had been drafted by a novice," he alleged.
Hooda demanded an impartial inquiry into all the irregularities related to the HTET, a hearing for the grievances raised by candidates, and strict action against those responsible.
The Leader of Opposition said recruitment examinations in the state continue to be marred by irregularities even as 16 per cent of teaching posts remain vacant. He claimed that 16,435 of the 1,01,499 sanctioned teaching posts are lying vacant and alleged that instead of filling these vacancies, the government is preoccupied with examination-related controversies.
Expressing concern over the state's rising debt, Hooda said Haryana's total debt from its formation in 1966 until 2014 stood at around ₹60,000–70,000 crore. However, he claimed that under the BJP government, the debt has increased to ₹5.50 lakh crore between 2014 and 2026.
"In effect, the BJP has pushed Haryana into debt from head to toe, following the philosophy of Charvaka—'borrow and consume ghee'," he said.
Referring to what he described as a series of scams in the state, Hooda alleged that another paddy procurement scam had surfaced in Karnal. He also claimed that scams were repeatedly coming to light in the banking sector.
"Yet, as always, the government is attempting to cover up the entire matter. Leaving aside banks, examinations and crops, this is a government under whose watch even the offerings made at the Lord Ram temple have been embezzled," he alleged.
Hooda reiterated his demand that the investigation into the Ram Mandir theft case be conducted under the supervision of a sitting judge to ensure that no guilty person escapes punishment and no innocent person is falsely implicated.
"Successive revelations in this case are hurting the sentiments of millions of devotees of Lord Ram. There is a universal demand that the culprits receive the swiftest and strictest possible punishment," Hooda said.
Follow us
